Jill Mollenhauer

This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)

Meet the Artist…

I always knew I wanted to be an artist, and at the suggestion of one of my science teachers, I began to direct my college studies toward medical illustration. However, partway through, I was offered a job teaching Junior High level art and I discovered a new interest. This position morphed into full time employment teaching grades K through 8, along with private classes for all ages. This interaction with my students so filled me with joy, that I dedicated myself to it fully.

After a decade with the school, the opportunity arose to focus solely on my work as a freelance artist, so I jumped in and began painting murals. Since 1982, I have had the pleasure of adorning restaurants, businesses, hospitals, museums and private homes across the US and abroad. The challenge of creating a space that perfectly reflects the dreams of my client has always thrilled me.

In 2006, I added sculpting to my repertoire and spent weekends doing art and garden shows, where I got to indulge my creative talents and my love of connecting with people. Southern California was a good place to grow up and run a business, but I always craved a closer connection to nature. When I finally listened to my heart, and decided to leave San Diego in 2011, my husband and I moved to Mexico. It wasn’t until we discovered Todos Santos, a couple of years later, that we knew we had found “our place”. Inspiration is everywhere, from the beautiful people, the energy, nature, to the vast options of things to do. Here I get to play and create to my heart’s content!

My Inspiration and Process: I am inspired by the intimacy of nature, and how we are all interconnected. Utterly dazzled by the brilliance of the Universe, I delight in exploring these connections even further. It draws me to blend different media together to express how I feel it. Acrylic paint, papers, shells, beads, ribbons and assorted found objects often find their way onto my canvases. Each item has a purpose and something to add to the whole.

Artist Statement: My art is a journey. Each piece is a dance and I move with it – into myself, into the energy of the piece, into Life. I have found that amazing beauty resides everywhere and it is my intention to point this out no matter how I express it – representationally or abstractly. I hope to invite you in deeper so you can feel the connection, the sensuous curve, the striking contrasts, the wonder of it all. I want you to see your own beauty here. My work is always an invitation to explore more deeply, to open more fully, and to love without fear.

Want to see more of Jill’s work? Click here for her website. 

La Esquina – Todos Santos